You’ve read all of the Dr. Spocks of the world, listened to all the advice from friends, family and even strangers, taken inventory of your baby supplies, and practiced Lamaze. All of this preparation was for the little bundle of joy who now rests safely in your arms. Now that you’re settling into your new role as a parent, have all of your expectations been met? Did you receive all of the words of advice for new parents you needed? Plus: Take our quiz to see if you could be making your child fat...

Bringing a new baby into your family is a joyous experience. But it is also undoubtedly overwhelming for parents, regardless of whether it’s their first baby or their tenth. All of your preparation may feel useless compared to the daily ins and outs of taking care of your new baby.

It’s exhilarating and exhausting all at once. But nevertheless, preparation is still essential, and advice from others who are experienced can go a long way in easing your fears and answering your questions. So if you haven’t received these sound words of advice for new parents yet, take heed.

Take Care of Yourself

To be the best caretaker of your child, you have to take care of yourself, too. Simply put, this means getting enough sleep, eating healthy and exercising. If you have a new baby, you have to take advantage of the free moments you get while the baby is asleep. Napping is probably more important than vacuuming the carpet, so don’t feel guilty if you want to just lie down and rest your weary body.

Eating healthy is also top priority so that you have enough energy to keep up with your little one.

Finally, time to exercise may seem like a distant dream, but there are always pockets of time in your day when you can get some cardio or weight-training in. Just remember to not inconvenience your child’s needs with your exercise. Inconvenience yourself first.

Lower Your Expectations

You have a million expectations of how your life will change and what you want for your child’s future. And we bet that your expectations are probably pretty lofty. For new parents, this is a common mistake that leads to more stress and letdowns. Sure, the role of parent usually means being everything to everyone, but as a new parent, you’ll never get close to perfection. You’re going to make mistakes, have limited time for certain activities and will inevitably be disappointed.

So take it all in stride and just concentrate on doing the best you can, and you’ll soon find that setting your expectations lower allows you to enjoy the many wonderful and joyous surprises that will come your way as a new parent!

Understand Your Fears

Part of lowering your expectations means that you might be surprised or ashamed of feelings you thought were impossible to feel after having a new baby. Many new parents experience overwhelming fear, doubt, ambivalence, or feelings of isolation. You may expect that the worse you’ll feel is exhaustion, but a lot of the times exhaustion magnifies those other fears even more. You may also always be afraid of accidentally hurting your baby, not thinking you’re doing enough or that you may lack maternal/paternal instincts.

These fears are completely normal for new parents to have, so don’t allow the worry to engulf you too much. Talk to your loved ones or your doctor about your fears and frustrations; you need a healthy outlet for your worries, otherwise it will all just weigh too heavily on your shoulders.

If you experience more serious or persistent harmful emotions toward you or your baby, you may have postpartum depression and need to be treated immediately.

Nurture Your Other Relationships

Your marriage and relationship with your other children will naturally change. But heed these words of advice for new parents. Don’t isolate your spouse or allow your other children to feel second best when a new baby arrives.

Save time for your spouse at dinner, late at night or whenever you can.

Keep your other children involved with the new baby and set aside one-on-one time throughout the day with them. Don’t diminish anybody else’s role. Also, ask for help if you need it – your spouse and children will learn that you value their role in the family and that they can contribute something positive to the home.

So whether you’re in the stage of baby showers, baby’s first word or the terrible twos, we hope these words of advice for new parents will help guide you along the wonderful path of parenthood.

Are You Making Your Child Fat?

Although you know how important it is to teach your child healthy habits, it can still be difficult to make the right choices in a world filled with fast food and sweets. Are you in control of your child's healthy eating habits, or could your overly restrictive or permissive parenting style be making your child fat? Find out with our parenting quiz.